The Annual Security Report (ASR) is due by October 1 each year, as mandated by the Clery Act. The ASR is an essential document that informs current and prospective students and employees about campus safety, security measures, and crime statistics. The report must include the following key components:
- Crime Statistics for the most recent three calendar years must be included.
- Policy Statements must include descriptions of institutional policies on:
- Campus Security Authority (CSA) Reporting
- Timely Warnings
- Emergency Notification and Evacuation
- Campus Law Enforcement
- Security and Access to Campus Facilities
- Drug and Alcohol Use
- Crime Prevention
- Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, and Stalking
- Crime Reporting Procedures on how students, staff, and faculty can report crimes and how the institution responds to those reports.
- Emergency Response and Evacuation Procedures on how the institution will communicate in the event of an emergency, including tests of these procedures.
- Policies on Alcohol and Drug Use regarding the possession, use, and sale of alcohol and drugs on campus, and details of prevention programs in place.
Failure to include any of these components may lead to fines or penalties under the Clery Act. Recently, two universities faced multi-million-dollar fines for unreported incidents and inaccurate reporting.
On March 6, 2024, the U.S. Department of Education imposed a record-breaking $14 million fine on Liberty University for violations of the Clery Act. This is the largest fine ever issued for non-compliance with the Clery Act. In addition to the fine, the Department of Education will conduct post-review monitoring of the university through April 2026 to ensure that promised improvements are implemented. Any further violations of Clery Act requirements could jeopardize Liberty University’s eligibility for federal student aid programs or lead to additional administrative sanctions.
On September 10, 2020, the University of California, Berkeley announced it would pay $2.35 million to the U.S. Department of Education for violations of the Clery Act. The fine resulted from a six-year review of the university’s campus safety policies, procedures, and crime statistics reporting, which concluded in September 2019. (https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2020/09/11/uc-berkeley-fined-235m-clery-violations)
If your district needs assistance with their Annual Security Report, contact Nancy Mulvey, Ennis Britton Consulting at nmulvey@ebconsultting.com
Resources: Clery Center, www.clerycenter.org and Ohio School Safety Center, https://ohioschoolsafetycenter.ohio.gov/